Today’s blog post will be short and sweet. Why? Because College Daughter (aka Knitting Daughter) is HOME and we have plans!  Right now, she’s hanging out at Loopy Central for a few minutes, but pretty soon we’re heading out for lunch. Remember when you were off at college and missing things from home?  One of the things on her “to do when I’m home” list is going to Qdoba for lunch – so off we go.  Of course there will be knitting and talking and hanging out this weekend as well (when she’s not hanging out with friends). And we’ve already made a trip to Starbucks. It’s so great to have her home for a few days and it will be over before I know it.

I am trying to get back into regularly posting recipes again, because so many of you kindly emailed to tell me you missed them when I didn’t post any new ones for several weeks! (Or did my husband prompt you to email? Because he knows it means good food when I need a recipe for the blog.  Hmmmm….) This one was shared by my mom and it’s perfect for a cool fall day.  I hope you like it!

Barbara’s Chicken Pot Pie

Filling
1/3 cup margarine or butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
14 oz can of Swanson’s seasoned chicken broth with roasted garlic
2/3 cup milk
2 1/2 to 3 cups of cooked chicken cut into bite size pieces
2 cups of good quality canned mixed vegetables-drained.  (Use canned because frozen gets too soggy)
2 deep dish frozen pie crusts (or make your own pie crust)

In saucepan, melt margarine or butter over medium hear.  Add onions and cook until tender.
Using a whisk, stir in flour, salt and pepper until well blended.  Gradually add milk and broth, stirring constantly until bubbly and thickened

Add chicken pieces and mixed vegetables and remove from heat.  Put 1 pie crust dough into bottom of 9″ pie plate. Spoon mixture into pie crust lined pan.  Top with second crust.  Crimp edges for a good seal.  Cut slits in the top crust.  Place foil around edges to prevent burning.

Bake at 425º for 35-40 minutes.   Let stand 15-20 minutes before serving.

Note: If you make it the day before serving and refrigerate, overnight, it’s as good or better  the next day.  Cut into serving size slices and microwave.

Another new yarn line has arrived – PolarKnits. Do you have some polar fleece coats or hats or mittens that you just love? Now you can buy fleece yarn!  I saw this at market this summer and have had so many people email to ask about it, that we decided to add it in.  Check out their website for some cute free hat patterns. Each ball has 55 yds. and knits up quickly on size 10 – 13 needles. The fleece is soft and very wind resistant, so it’s perfect for keeping hats, necks, and hands warm all winter long. We’ll have it up next week for you.

I’m working on Malabrigo socks, a Feather and Fan Scarf out of Alpaca With a Twist Socrates, and that skein of Sanguine Gryphon “Bugga” for socks this weekend. (Gryphon very thoughtfully provided a link to the bug that inspired my Oak Timberworm colorway, since I said I didn’t want to see it.  Did I click on the link?  Yes.  She made me.  At least I’m blaming her for it.  I felt compelled to click on it and immediately shut the window, so I consider that her fault. I still love the yarn, though.  My Oak Timberworm.)

Sheri makingGarlicChickenPizzaandFritoPeaSaladfordinner-someofCollegeGirl’sfavorites.Haveyoutriedthoseyet?

Good News: Cashmere feels wonderful.  Have you noticed that? I have to pick up the CashSport by The YoYo every time I walk by those shelves. (This is the only yarn base we have in Sportweight with cashmere in it and I am going to be making a pair of socks for myself out of it.  Quick knit and wonderful on your feet.)
Bad News: My “To Knit” list didn’t go down very far last weekend, like I had hoped.  Not very far at all. I can’t even explain that.

Good News: More cashmere arrived today in the form of a new line from The Sanguine Gryphon, called “Bugga!”. 70% superwash merino, 20% cashmere, 10% nylon. I took this skein right out of the top of the box for myself. I think I’ve already admitted to a certain addiction to Gryphon’s colors. The Bugga line will go up next week. (In keeping with the bug theme, this one is called “Oak Timberworm”. I have no desire to see what an Oak Timberworm looks like in real life. I’m going to pretend it’s called “Oak Timber” and leave it at that. I don’t like bugs.)
Bad News: Another thing to add to my “To Knit” list. But I’m just going to deal with that.

Good News: Cashmere Roving arrived today, too. A new blend from Tempted, this is made up of 80% superwash merino and 20% cashmere. (It will go up next week, too.)  Also addictively soft.  Also coming home with me.
Bad News: Also addictively soft. Also coming home with me. (Can I help it that that is good AND bad news?)

Good News: Tomorrow is Thursday and College Girl is coming home for Fall Break weekend.  We’re so looking forward to having her home for a few days.
Bad News: College Guy is off on a tour of Canada and the East Coast with four friends. I can’t believe all that they are packing in to this Road Trip. (Note – He considers this Good News. Only his parents consider it Bad News, since we don’t get to see him this weekend.)

Good News: Gracie and Zoe are just happy that someone else will be in the house for the weekend. They miss “their” kids, too.
Bad News: They’ll pout when she goes back to school on Sunday.

Good News: The time is drawing near for Loopy Kisses to go back into Loopy Groupie orders. (See the bowl in the photos? That stays filled year-round here at Loopy Central. Shoppers and Elves are partial to them.)

Bad News: But we can’t add them in to orders yet. It’s still in the 80′s here today, and very humid. Blah.

Sheri whatgoodandbadnewsdoyouhavetosharetoday?

(P.S. All of the Schaefer “Sock the Vote” invoices have gone out. If you pre-ordered skeins of this yarn, please visit your Loopy account page!)

I’ll admit it. I’m totally smitten with the yarns and roving that come by the case-full from The Sanguine Gryphon. The subtle (rich, classy) blend of colors are simply amazing, and I have a hard time keeping my hands off of them. Today, you get to meet the Gryphon behind The Sanguine Gryphon!
____________

Loopy: Hi Gryphon!  We’re so glad to have you in the Limelight today. I think you might be our first belly-dancing indie dyer.  Or at least the first one who has sent us a photo! How long have you been a knitter and who taught you to knit?
Gryphon: My mother taught me to knit when I was a teenager and I had a burst of enthusiasm, but then put it aside and forgot all about it. Five or so years ago I saw a woman knitting on a train and asked her to show me. She tried to teach me to throw the yarn and I was all muddled and awkward, until I tuned her out and let my hands take over. In an instant I was zipping along, continental, as my mother had shown me. I haven’t put the needles down since.

Loopy: I guess our brains and fingers really do remember things from long ago! So what is your favorite item to knit?
Gryphon: Anything involving a technique I don’t yet know.

Loopy: So what will you do when you run out of new things to learn?? Well, thankfully, people keep coming up with new things to challenge all of us. Before being a dyer, what other jobs have you had in life?
Gryphon: Oh dear. You sure you want to ask this, Loopy? Let’s see? I’ve done a lot of teaching and private tutoring, recently knitting and spinning classes, but before that Latin, German, chemistry, composition, math, and probably other things I’ve forgotten. I did the usual waitressing and bartending that follows the acquisition of a BA. I was – ahem – a ‘dancer’ and occasionally a bouncer in some seedy joints in Baltimore for waaay too long (am I making Loopy blush?), followed by a stint as a molecular biologist at the National Institutes of Health (the fabulous thing about having a degree in philosophy is that you can talk your way into ANYTHING), and then some office work for an environmental science company. Oh, and I had a historical costuming business in college.

Loopy: Wow.  Yes, I’m really glad I asked!  What a history of experience. We’re glad that you ended up here with us. How did you go from knitting to dyeing?
Gryphon: When I decided to launch my business I thought I’d just sell spinning wheels, fiber, and handspun yarn. And then my dear friend and fabulous dyer Kate of Dragonfly Fibers (who also dyes some of The Sanguine Gryphon colourways for The Loopy Ewe) taught me to dye and it completely rocked my world. Really, I owe Kate much of my present existence, aside from the fact that she puts up with a lot of craziness from me.

Loopy: How do you come up with your colorways, and do you have a favorite?
Gryphon: Many of my colourways are based on paintings or photographs, especially nature images. Others are just mixes that seem like a good idea, and a few are the creations of some of my elves or my friends’ children. My favourites tend to be the murky greens, like Gorgias or Glaucon. In fact, sometimes I look up at the drying lines after a day of what should have been varied dyeing to see golden green beside brown-green beside moss green beside olive green?

Loopy: That Gorgias is the first skein of Sanguine Gryphon that we started knitting here, too.  We love it. Of course it’s sold out again – you need to make more for us.   Another thing that’s fun about your line is that you have some interesting colorway names.  Is there a story behind that?
Gryphon: Almost all of them have stories! Some are named for the painting or image that inspired them, some for lines from poems, some for various dances, etc. The Eidos names come from Plato, either characters in his dialogues, or concepts from them, which is why they tend to be unpronounceable Greek names. ‘Eidos’ means the type or essence of something, its ‘form’, an important concept in Plato. At some point I may branch out to Aristotle. Just putting that philosophy degree to good use!

Loopy: It’s important to use those degrees. We also love your Kypria line with the stories to go along with them.  How did that come about?
Gryphon: I learned about the existence of the Kypria (or rather, its non-existence) some years ago and became obsessed with it for awhile. The idea that there was a lost prequel to the Iliad and the Odyssey was really exciting to me. I did a massive amount of research on it with the intention of reconstructing the book, but when it came to actually sitting down to write, I froze up. How do you write a Homeric epic? So I put the whole thing aside. Only recently I hit on the idea of combining it with the yarn. When I think only in terms of writing a little paragraph at a time it’s not daunting, I never have to think of the whole thing, just that tiny fragment. I’m telling myself that it’s a clever marketing idea, but really I’m using it to indulge the part of me that wanted to grow up to be a classical scholar.

Loopy: We like that each different colorways gives a new piece of the story. What is your favorite part of your job? And your not-so-favorite part?
Gryphon: I love touching the yarn. I have elf helpers now, but I still prefer to be the one to bring the yarn in off the lines and wind the hanks, so I can touch it and look at it more. What I don’t enjoy is the amount of time I spend in front of the computer. I can’t even figure out what I do there, but it eats whole days and the to-do list never seems to diminish.

Loopy: It seems like your time is better spent dyeing! Would you like to tell us about your family?
Gryphon: I have the best husband one could possibly ask for. He does all the shopping, cooking, and dishwashing, never complains about the way 90% of the house is taken up by yarn, and never asks how much I’ve spent on yarn or why I need a 14th spinning wheel. Our daughter is similarly marvelous: she never complains that in a 4-bedroom house she doesn’t have her own room because there’s too much yarn. Of course that could be because she’s not quite two and doesn’t know yet that it’s a problem. She is, however, terribly jealous and one of her earliest phrases was, “All done yarn, Mommy.” I have to be careful not to knit something for her when she’s around, because she’ll resent the item and refuse to wear it.

Loopy: “All done yarn, Mommy.” – that’s funny!  Hopefully she’ll grow up to be a knitter and spinner and will totally understand the yarn all over the place.  I see you have started her early on spinning. Are there other hobbies that you enjoy?
Gryphon: Well, I’ve already incorporated the classics research into the business, so that doesn’t count as ‘other’ anymore. Belly dancing. I really love that. I dance much of the time while I’m working.

Loopy: And what would be your favorite way to spend a day off?
Gryphon: A day off from the yarn? Hmm, I sure would love to get some knitting and spinning in, and maybe process some of my fleeces.

Loopy: A day off, and you still want to be involved with yarn and fiber? We totally understand that. Anything else you’d like to add?
Gryphon: I’d dearly love to spend all my time wearing medieval and renaissance clothes, and maybe live in a castle. But I think those re-enactor people are really weird.
____________________________
The Sneak Up just Snuck Up! This week, we added in: HiyaHiya Bamboo DPN’s, Lantern Moon Rosewood Sox Stix (in the new 6″ length), Celtic Swan Forge Sterling Silver DPN’s, Atenti Bags, All Things Heather Merino/Bamboo, All Things Heather Merino/Tencel, Numma Numma Saucy, Perfect Day Yarns, Lorna’s Laces Silk/Bamboo Amy-Friendly yarn, Noro Silk Garden Worsted, Neighborhood Fiber Lace, Zen String British Wool Roving, Fleece Artist Trail Socks, and The YoYo CashSport. Over the weekend, we also re-stocked: Cascade 220, Opal Harry Potter, HiyaHiya Steel needles, GoKnit Bags, Wendy Knits Patterns, Lane Borgosesia Cashwool, and The Dyeing Arts Roving. Check it out!

Sheri it’saNo-Mail-Mondayhere,butneverfear,we’llgetallofyourordersontheirwaytomorrow!

We watched The Office last night, and right after that, “SNL Weekend Update-Thursday” came on. It started out with some humorous skits about the political scene in the U.S. right now (which, actually, were a lot more fun to watch than the real thing.) But the thing that had us cracking up was during the “newscast” segment, where they were talking about the economy.  Don’t you just sometimes want to yell at someone and tell them to get this figured out and FIXED so that we can be done with the doom and gloom and trying times? I think that’s why this skit made me laugh so hard – it’s exactly what I want to say to someone.  (Note – this shows the whole newscast.  The “Fix It” part is from 2:25 – 3:45 in there.) I may have to watch it once a day for some levity….

I finished sock #1 of my Lorna’s Laces Loopy Ewe colorway. I love it! I think mini-stripes are fun. I knit this on size 1′s with 60 stitches on the needles.  Plain sock on the foot, K3/P1 on the ribbing. When I knit mini-striping yarn, I start by counting the number of stitches it takes me to knit through the first color on whatever size needle I’m using for that project.  In this case, there were about 65-68 stitches in each color section as I was knitting it on my size #1′s.  By making my sock 60 stitches around (which I did because that’s the size I needed the sock to be), there are a few stitches of color that overlap to the next row. When you look at this sock, you can see that these slight overlaps of color from one row to the next kind of break the pattern up a little and cause some “movement” in the sock. I like that. I also could’ve done a bit of a pattern in the sock (instead of plain rib), because that extra inch of color would’ve given me some leeway and still kept each row basically a different color.  If I was knitting a scarf with this (or the Sport weight), I’d do the same thing – count the number of stitches in one color, for the needle size I wanted to use. It helps you figure out how many stitches you might want to use on each row, how wide your color stripes are going to be, what different patterns you might experiment with, etc. (Note – I tried Judy’s Magic Cast-on for the toe since I wanted the stripes to look good.  Here’s a video of Cat Bordhi demonstrating it. I’m sold on this cool cast-on!)

Thank you for all of your great suggestions on colorways for our new “Team Spirit” line! We are going through and tallying all of the votes and will come up with the most frequently requested combinations to start with.  (And then we’ll continue to build from there.) The Team Spirit colorways will be like the Loopy Ewe colorway in the way it knits up into mini-stripes. It will be fun to see our favorite teams (& Hogwarts houses) knit up into socks and scarves and hats, as you all go to town! Since there were over 500 comments, we used the random number generator to pick TWO winners for a Loopy Ewe Gift Certificate. Congratulations to Jenny in Wisconsin and Jan in VA!  We will keep you posted on the posting of the colorways. (By the way – we keep getting emails about whether or not we’ll have more of The Loopy Ewe colorway.  Definitely!  It’s not a limited edition – we will keep it in stock as often as they can dye it up for us.  We’ve also put in an order for solid-color skeins of the Loopy Red, because many of you have asked for that so that you can do heels and toes.)

Here’s a wonderful cookie recipe for you today. I hope your family loves them as much as mine does!

Emily’s Sugar Cookie Crispers

1 lb. butter (4 sticks), softened
4 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
4 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. vanilla

Optional add-ins – pick one or two! Nestle’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, Ghiradelli’s Milk Chocolate Chips, macadamia nuts, chopped pecans, dried cranberries, dried cherries, etc. Each version is just as good as the next!

Whip the butter and the sugar together.  Beat in the eggs.  Mix the dry ingredients together and then add into creamed mixture, slowly.  Mix well. Add vanilla, then add in any of your “optional add-ins”.

Bake at 375 degrees for 13-15 minutes.  Cool on cookie sheet for several minutes before removing to baking rack to finish cooling.

We have Monday off because it’s a No-Mail-Holiday here in the U.S. (Columbus Day). I’ve decided that I’m going to try to knit more of my Christmas gifts this year (until someone FIXES the economy, FPS), so it will be a Power Knitting Weekend for me. Is anyone else finding that they’re more inclined to make gifts this year? What kinds of things will you make? I’m dragging out my patterns and books and making a Master List for the Fall. This will be fun!

Sheri mustalsogogroceryshoppingthisweekend.That’snotsofun.

Today’s Limelight focuses on Claudia, owner and dyer of the beautiful yarn that comes from Claudia Hand Painted. When we opened here at The Loopy Ewe, this was one of our first lines (along with Cherry Tree Hill, Schaefer Yarn, Regia, and Opal.) We’ve grown a little since then!  But I knew that Claudia’s yarn was something that sock knitters would love just as soon as I saw it at that first TNNA Market (before the website had even opened for business).  We have carried it ever since. I know you’ll enjoy getting to meet her today!

Loopy: Hi Claudia!  We appreciate you taking the time to talk today. Have you been a knitter for long?  And who taught you to knit?
Claudia: My mother taught me to knit.  Of course she taught me to knit right handed.  I did not knit much as a child, but about 12 years ago, I picked it up again.  I have been a voracious knitter and have taught myself to knit left handed.

Loopy: I think there are a lot of people out there who tried it as a child and then came back to it years later. (Of course some of you tried and and stuck with it the whole time!) What is your favorite item to knit?
Claudia: I am a sweater knitter.  When I first got back into knitting I could only knit solid colored garments so I began to knit cabled items.  Everyone told me socks were too hard, so I put off knitting them for years only to discover that they are not that difficult.  So, now I tell people to knit whatever items they are interested/passionate about.

Loopy: Right – socks are not that hard at all. I’m glad you discovered that along the way. So you like cables and sweaters – what is the most challenging thing that you have knit to date?
Claudia: I designed and knit my Twirling Diamonds Coat.  That took a year for me to knit & design.

Loopy: That sounds pretty – we need to see a picture. It seems like you’ve been in this business for quite awhile. What did you do before you were dyeing yarn as Claudia Hand Painted?
Claudia: I worked with my former husband in the brokerage business.

Loopy: That doesn’t sound like a place to explore too much creativity! How did you decide to start a yarn company?
Claudia: I wanted to involve both the creative and problem solving parts of me.  I had a brush with my own mortality and as a result made some significant changes in my life.  One of which was to allow myself to be creative.

Loopy: We’re so glad you came up with your yarn company through all of that. What is your favorite part of your job? And your not-so-favorite part?
Claudia: My favorite part – the satisfaction of walking out of the dye room after a day’s dyeing.  It feels great to have “created” something.  My not-so-favorite part?  I cannot look at the yarn until it is dry.  I am always overly critical of my work while it is fresh.  Once the yarn is rinsed & dried I am much happier with the results.

Loopy: How do you come up with your colorways, and do you have a personal favorite?  I know that our favorite is our signature “Peppermint Mocha” colorway.  We use a photo of that in all of our Loopy Ewe ads and so many people email to find out what that colorway is called.
Claudia: Ocean Depth and Oops! are my favorites.  Inspiration comes from everything around me.  Sometimes I find myself just looking at the sky and trying to figure out how to achieve the exact color in a cloud.

Loopy: A cloud colorway would be pretty!  Besides knitting and dyeing, are there other hobbies that you enjoy?
Claudia: I love to garden.

Loopy: That would also be a good place to find new colorways. If you had a day off, how would you spend it?
Claudia: I love to sleep in if possible, then curl up on the couch with a good book and my pets.  I have a dog, cat and macaw (bird).  Bitsy the dog and Alice the macaw come to work with me every day.

Loopy: We’re glad that you shared photos of them with us.  I don’t think I have heard of another “shop bird” before. I like it. Anything else you’d like to add?
Claudia: Thank you to all you knitters who take the time to let me know how our yarns are working out for you.  I love to get feedback from knitters.
————
Sheri anotherLimelightonMonday-oneofourbelly-dancingindiedyers.Curious?

….. chances are, it’s not good news. Who wants to drive up and find a fire truck and an ambulance??  Fortunately in this instance, it was for a good cause.  All of the kids from the Montessori school (we share a parking lot with them) were having a firsthand look at all of the trucks.  Whew.  They put on a good show, including all sirens blaring as they left. (I was trying to sneak a quick photo through my office window, and the cute little girl in pink turned around and caught me!)

I have another Loopy Limelight for you, but I decided to do it on Wednesday of this week. I had a few things I wanted to tell you about today, instead!  On Wednesday, we have Claudia from Claudia’s Hand Painted Yarn in the Limelight.  You’ll get to see photos of Bitsy and Alice, who accompany her to work each day. (Only one is a dog, and the other one is not a cat.  Curious?)

Many of you have been emailing to ask about upcoming products and their availability, so I wanted to address this in the blog in hopes that it will help. Yes, we’ve heard about the new Namaste Zuma Bag and we have it on order in all of the colors it will come in. It will come in: Hollywood Pink, Turquoise, Olive, Saddle, Charcoal, Lime, Eggplant and Peacock. They expect to start shipping these bags in November and we’ll get it quickly! Feel free to email me if you want to pre-order it in a certain color. (sheri AT theloopyewe DOT com) We’ll make sure you’re taken care of. (Right now, they’re not planning on offering the Eggplant color in any of the other styles of bag. If that changes, I’ll let you know.)

We’ve also been getting emails asking if we’ll have the Schaefer Yarn “Sock the Vote” limited edition colorways. Yes – we ordered them last week when we first got notice of them!  No matter what your political affiliation, it sounded like a fun way to put a positive spin on the elections. You’re also welcome to email me if you’d like to pre-order any of these colorways so that we can make sure to get you what you’d like. This is a limited dye-run, so it’s not something that we’ll be able to continue to carry once they are done dyeing it.

On Friday’s blog, I told you about our exclusive “Team Spirit” colorways that we will be carrying from Lorna’s Laces. I asked for two-color combos, but many of you have asked for more colors than that to be included.  The two-color combos will be striping, but we’re also looking into doing three-colorway combos for you that will not stripe but will instead knit up similar to regular Lorna’s colorways. If you held back from mentioning teams with more than two color combos, go ahead and leave another comment.  Beth at Lorna’s Laces is up for the multi-color challenge, too!

When are we getting Wollmeise back in? (I think we get about 15-20 emails/phone calls a week with this question.) We will probably have it back up sometime in November.  Claudia hasn’t sent another shipment to us yet.  Fall is a very busy time for her with markets and things, so the fall order is usually on a bit of a delay.  We are thinking about just adding it in quietly without any pre-announcements on the blog or anything.  Would you shoot us if we did that?? (You have to admit, it would help with the 24-hour stalking of the site, once the announcements are made …) Pre-orders and pre-notifications aren’t available with Wollmeise. But I know you all already know that.

Will we have Malabrigo Sock? Yes, absolutely.  We’ve had all 24 colors (14 semi-solids, 10 multi) on order for what seems like forever!  (Their stock of this new sock yarn was one of the casualties of their warehouse fire this past summer. Otherwise it would’ve been out a few months ago.) They’re planning on November for U.S. distribution, and I promise that we’ll have it as soon as it ships out.  I finally got a sample skein of it from my yarn rep last week and it’s a gorgeous 3-ply fingering weight superwash merino (very soft and smoosh-able), with 440 yds/3.5 oz. per skein. We’ll let you know when it arrives here and is in our photo room. (Will we have more Malabrigo Lace and Worsted? Yes to that, too.  We had to wait until the new space opened up, as we had run out of room.  But we’re working on filling all of that back up now.)

We have more Atenti bags and more GoKnit bags arriving later in the week, as well as a big order of those beautiful Celtic Swan Forge Sterling Silver DPN’s that are the ultimate “spoil yourself or a friend” item.

Lastly – we just did this week’s Sneak Up, and it was big.  Did you catch it?

Sheri thepeopleinourbuildingcallmeLoopy(asin”HiLoopy!”)whentheyseemeinthehalls.
Doyouthinkthisisaproblem??